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by Noelleian



Series: 100 Themes [3]
Category: Gundam Wing
Genre: Family, Friendship, Gen, Post-War, introspective
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-04
Updated: 2017-03-04
Packaged: 2018-09-28 08:15:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,013
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10081067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Noelleian/pseuds/Noelleian
Summary: After the war, Wufei observes his fellow pilots and reflects on the meaning of family.





	

**Author's Note:**

> For the 100 Themes challenge. You can find the list of prompts here: https://dailyarcanines.tumblr.com/post/155944706128/100-themes
> 
> Prompt: Tribal

Of course Relena Darlian just _had_ to throw a party to celebrate the end of the war. Of course she did. But that was simply how the other half lived, wasn’t it? Any excuse to have a party. 

Nataku, rich people didn’t do anything half-assed either. Everything from the food, to the decor, to the live music, to the champagne fountain was nothing short of top tier class. **  
**

It was most certainly not Wufei’s forte. Parties were useless wastes of time and resources. Wearing uncomfortable rental clothes that bound and pinched, worrying about eating, or drinking anything for fear he’d never get his security deposit back. Forced into socialization with people he didn’t even know. Casual small talk made him tired, restless, and tetchy and his only comfort was the fact that his fellow pilots were also in attendance.

If he had to suffer, so did they.

After getting his ear talked off by some elderly gentlemen with a hernia problem, Wufei politely excused himself in a desperate need for some fresh air. He stepped out through the sliding glass doors that looked out over the ocean and leaned against one of the support columns that held up the expansive awning overhead. The sun was beginning to set and the sky was alight with fiery hues of pinks and orange. On the beach, his fellow pilots were frolicking in the water with their trousers rolled up to their knees, though from what Wufei could see, both Maxwell and Winner had been unsuccessful in keeping their clothing dry.

Well, Maxwell didn’t really surprise him. Especially when the braided boy thrust his arms into the air and tipped backwards as a large wave rolled onto shore. He disappeared beneath the surface and then popped up a moment later, his laughter carrying across the warm sea breeze.

Barton was trying his best to keep Winner dry since the blond was still healing from his stab wound, but that was proving to be a fruitless endeavor as Winner skipped across the ankle-high water and was wrestled down to the sand by Maxwell. Barton managed to pull him up just before another wave rolled onshore and Wufei smirked as he watched the former Heavyarms’ pilot give Maxwell a stern lecture about the importance of keeping wounds from getting wet.

“You’re going to need to put that boy in a wet suit, Barton,” Wufei muttered and then laughed as Maxwell spun around and tackled an unsuspecting Yuy instead, bringing them both down beneath the waves.

 _I’m surrounded by idiots_ , he thought with a twinge of fondness. Despite his attempts to remain neutral and keep his fellow pilots at arm’s length, they’d somehow managed to worm their way into his heart.

He remembered a thesis he’d once written on tribalism during his scholar days. His paper had ultimately been a scathing retort about the flaws of such a system and the harmful effects of separatism both inside and outside of any self-contained tribe. He’d written that there was no purpose for such things in this day and age and that enlightenment was achieved when humankind embraced each other without prejudice, or favoritism.

He still held those views, but as he watched his fellow pilots play in the water, as light and carefree as children who had yet to understand the savagery of human nature, he thought he might have understood the concept a little better now.

His drive for independence and a solitary life was still a deep-seated desire, but he realized now that it was not a sustainable existence, at least not when that was all your life encompassed. People’s need for interaction and unity, a sense of belonging and community, was imperative for a civilized society to function.

That was what it really boiled down to. Unity. Connecting with people who understand you, but also not shunning those who don’t.

Perhaps that was what Master O had meant when he’d told Wufei that the true meaning of tribalism _wasn’t_ isolation from those who are different. After all, even those who are predominantly similar are still different. It was simply a bond, powerful and unbreakable, with those whom you are most at home with while still caring for the well being of those outside of that unit.

He watched as Winner approached, running despite Barton yelling at him to slow down and stopped where the sand of beach became the grass of the estate’s yard. He was flushed pink from excitement and the heat of the day and his wet clothes were plastered to skin.

Wufei smirked. _Guess I was right about that wet suit after all._

“Wufei, come join us! The water is fantastic!”

And this was it, he realized. What Master O had been talking about. The true meaning of tribalism was family. And these boys, as irritating as they were at times, were his brothers. He was struck by such a profound sense of love and adoration for them, knowing that no matter what happened, he would always fight alongside them. Protect them until his very last breath.

He rolled his eyes in a show of exasperation and stepped off the patio. “Alright, Winner. If you insist.” The blond grinned wide and bounced on the balls of his feet and Wufei’s heart warmed at the genuine display of happiness. At the knowledge that he was just as important to them as they were to him.

It meant everything and he slung an affectionate arm around the boy as they fell into step and walked down towards the beach where they were joined by the other three who ambushed him and dragged him into the water.

He laughed as he came up for air, spitting out salt water and splashing Maxwell in the face when the boy tried to dunk him.

For them, he would do anything no matter the cost and he knew without a doubt that they would do the same for him. They were his family, his brothers…his tribe. They were home and there was nothing more precious, or more comforting than that.  


End file.
